Bold Colors Shaking Up the Automotive Scene

According to Forbes magazine, and backed up with a quick glance around any American mall or grocery store parking lot, white is the most popular color for automobiles in the US. In fact, Forbes lists the top 10 colors, in order of popularity, as follows:

White

Black

Silver

Gray

Red

Blue

Brown/Beige

Yellow/Gold

Green

Everything Else

But leave it to the millennial market to shake things up a bit in a brightly hued way. Head to your nearest dealership selling most any brand of new rides and you'll likely see at least one ride that's a bit of a color shock. Examples are Subaru's new BRZ two-door sports car and STi sports sedan in Hyper Blue with matching interior features including stitching on the seats, console, door panels, shift knob and steering wheel.

The trend started with 2015 models, including the Fanta Yellow Fit, the SRT Viper in Electric Lime Green and the Kia GT4 Stinger in a hue that's somewhere between a golden yellow and a fiery orange. Earlier this year, Mercedes-Benz took a rainbow approach to its Pebble Beach display with set of AMG GT and G63 models in full palette of colors, including a wild purple. It looked a bit like being in a giant candy story.

"You see far too many white, black and gray cars today, along with different variations of silver," Stewart Reed, the chairman of the Transportation Design Department at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, told reporters recently. Still, he and other experts on automotive hues don't expect to see a full-on color explosion on the highways quite yet. "If somebody has a garage with a bunch of cars, they're more likely to take a chance on a bright color. But if someone has just one car, then when it comes to color selection they tend to be a little bit careful."

Sportier cars purchased by younger drivers are the most apt to buy into the bold color trend. How about you? Do you drive a bold-colored ride or are you a bit more traditional? Post your pics and thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook Fan Page.